bad maggie...

Maggie is proof that we live in a fallen world. She has me convinced. And it’s not that she’s particularly bad or anything, it’s just that she, a puppy, does have an instinctive sin nature.

You ask me how I know this, that a dog is inclined to do the wrong thing. This innocent animal who is currently lying in a flower bed, gnawing on some poor defenseless plant, how could she possibly do anything wrong?

Well, let’s consider the carpet incidents, for instance. We have new carpet in our house so we decided Maggie should not be allowed to walk on it, especially as we are having a few setbacks in housebreaking. Maggie knows this. (You may at this point choose to argue that dogs cannot understand us when we talk. I think this is ridiculous. When I speak to Maggie I can tell by her expression and her eyes that she knows I am speaking to her and if she has done something good or if she is in trouble. That’s what I’m getting to…) So if I walk into the hallway, say to put away a book, to get a load of laundry, or to do some other task in one of the bedrooms, Maggie attempts to follow me. I stop in the doorway, look at her, and in my very stern voice say: “Maggie, Stay! Do not follow me onto the carpet!” She then looks at me, lies down on the rug by the door, (on which she is allowed to play) and gives me a very pathetic look that says to me, “ok, I’ll try.”

At this point in our conversation, I walk to wherever I’m going and get whatever I’m getting. But as I turn to come back down the hallway, I see that Maggie has not stayed in the den on her rug, but is creeping, super quietly, body low to the ground, out into the hallway. So I say: “Maggie!! That is not allowed!!” in my corrective voice. She knows she is in trouble, so she tries to become an actual part of the carpet, with ears, paws, and belly flat against it, and then she hurries back to her rug. This happens EVERY day.

Tell me this is not a case of someone deliberately choosing the wrong choice by instinct…not a learned behavior. Even our puppy has a sinful side, and that is just more evidence we really do live in a fallen world.

Must see TV

I think I have watched more TV since living in Mississippi than I did in the four years while I was at Asbury. Last night we got sucked in to "Deal or No Deal." We decided we could be compulsive gamblers. I don't know which is worse, the fact that we were talking to the contestants, telling them to take the deal and not be greedy, or the fact that we will probably watch it again tonight. and I have to say, I was all for the guy taking the $675,000 but then I was pretty disappointed he didn't ride it out to the end, seeing as he had $3 million in his case all along. thank goodness I'm not on that show. It's too much pressure...

our other favorite show to watch is the Cosby show at 12 every day at lunch. today I saw an episode I didn't remember ever seeing before. Vanessa came home drunk and Cliff and Claire punished her by making her play a drinking game with them...but then she realized they were just drinking juice.

then our other thing to watch is HGTV. who knew ben was into interior design. he has definite opinions and has made them known as we have arranged furniture, hung pictures, and tried to match comforters to wall colors. we keep thinking of things we'd like to do here in our house...

today we actually watched MTV for half an hour. that's about as much as I can stand. It was some show called "Sweet 16" something or other and it's about these 15 year old people having the most outrageous and ridiculous birthday parties. the guy today was all upset because his invitations were a day late and then they turned out to be mp3 players with his voice on them, inviting his whole school to a club for his party, enticing them by telling them some big name rappers would be there. and they were. it just got us to thinking about how MTV is such a false reality. they have all these shows which portray life as a fantasy, a dream world, centered around dating, sex, fashion, music, parties, etc. money never holds anybody back, but is a power and status symbol. what worries me is that people who watch MTV will start to believe that's how we all ought to live and that if we don't get a Hummer for our 16th birthday we're nobody, completely uncool, total failures, second rate.

so what's the point here...i definitely watch too much TV and I know it. it gives me something to think about anyway. i guess that's what can happen when you don't have a job.

God's pretty Creative, isn't He?

God impresses me sometimes...
ok, a lot. most recently God has impressed me through our puppy. it's his creative imagination. i mean seriously, who else would have thought up a bassett hound?

let's think about it...this puppy has the biggest feet. and the longest, widest ears i have ever seen. when she bows her head to take a drink of water her ears can't help but fall in the bowl. so then she runs back to me, satisfied and dripping. she has a coat of many colors: tan, brown, black, white. her tail looks like it was dipped in a paint can; it is all black except for an inch long white tip. she sleeps with one eye open - i think it's because the weight of her ear pulls her skin so that her eyelid can't close all the way. she tries to bark and everyonce in a while she gets one of those deep hound dog howls.

but, she needs a bath.

at any rate, i certainly never would have picked out all of this puppy's body parts and put them all together.
but i'm thankful -and impressed- that God did.

titles tell the tale...

why "our commonwealth"?
not only because I love Kentucky, which claims to be a commonwealth, but also because that's what i think the kingdom of God is...our commonwealth. it's a place without favoritism or partiality. a place where our wealth and riches are not physical or based on our bank accounts, but where our wealth is intangible, spiritual. it is a place where we share love, God's love, displayed in Christ's life through the presence of the Holy Spirit. and when we love each other, we love God, too.
I hope to be faithful as I write here, and that in doing so, further our commonwealth.